---

Elinor set a swift pace out of Nethermore, obtaining the good news regarding Iris’ youngest daughter’s recovery; it was time to go to war and, hopefully, bridge more allies with her nation to the east—such as the desert clans—to further build her influence.

Currently, her goal was to turn these budding God-Touched into something that could actually be useful for what was to come, and it would be a long road.

A soft puff of air passed through her lips as she turned to see the struggling mortals attempting to keep up.  Naturally, Valentina was in the lead with Alisa—Sal’s girlfriend—in the rear; she’d expected the teens to struggle to adapt to the enhanced Seeds.

The Tiger Beastkin had an advantage due to already receiving one of the Lesser Seeds, yet the transition in the extra power they’d received from Elinor’s children would still take a toll on their souls.

Adoncia tried to encourage the teenage girl; Elinor could feel the maid having a tough time—dealing with Tiamat’s influence weighing her down—despite eating a healthy breakfast with the others; her Ogress Passive granted her more power via consumption.

They had to be pushed for the enhanced Seeds to fully take hold, and it would still be another day or two before it bloomed, but even Valentina was having trouble maintaining the speed Elinor set.

Elinor did not expect Apate’s ragged breathing behind them; the trickster may have been a very powerful personification—possibly touching the 13th dimension as a muddled down Celestial; then again, she’d been so weak after their Existence collapsed, a teenage girl overpowered her—yet her mortal body was not the most durable since she’d used much of her Greater Seed’s power to dip into her trade.

Thor only lagged behind to be in a position to act if needed, taking a spot between Elinor and the group of mortals; Elinor wanted him to see how far they needed to be pushed on this venture to be prepared for the battle when the time came before making her next suggestion to the man.

Garu wasn’t having trouble remaining by her side as an undead, and Nelika—their guide—was doing surprisingly well for a mortal, yet she was a decently strong scout in a powerful desert clan; it was reassuring that she’d be able to maintain this speed when the teens gradually grew stronger.

As for Kulitta, the dominatrix was lifting a critical eye at the wine-haired personification, struggling to keep up with them.  “I expected you to have more… stamina.  Perhaps we should institute a training regiment, Mistress.”

“Indeed,” Elinor sighed, coming to a halt with those around her; the leather-dressed songstress’ gloved hands tightened at her back while leering back at the lagging groups.  “Some adjusting will need to be done.”

The trickster placed a hand against her pumping chest, still able to return an indignant look at Kulitta.  “I… am doing just fine.  I appreciate your concern,” she huffed, stopping to straighten and wipe away the sweat on her brow.

“I am concerned!” Kulitta chimed, wearing a testing smile while summoning her whip to smack against her palm.  “If we continue at this snail’s pace, it will be more than a year before we reach our destination.  What would you suggest we do about your… fragile body?”

Apate smirked, mirroring the songstress by placing a hand on her hip.  “Hmm.  My input?  You could always carry me!  You do appear to have muscle and… more on the inside of your head, I’m sure.”

“Hehe.  You’d be surprised, but I think we should reverse that thought; it would do us little good to have our weakest link coddled like a child.”

Garu and Nelika tried to remain out of the discussion, observing the struggling mortals, but Elinor’s sudden chuckle drew their gaze, and Thor jumped forward to meet them upon seeing her gesture to join them.

“I assume thy call art in the topic of the God-Touched?” he asked, trying to keep his focus away from Apate and Kulitta’s feud.

Elinor breathed out a long stream of air, yet a smile was on her lips, which drew the two women to center on her.  “What is your opinion of their current progress, Odinson?”

Thor’s mouth became a line as he stared at the four in the rear before looking at the high quen’talrat buildings around them and the underground hallway that would lead them to the gates outside the city.

“Valentina has shown improvement since we began, but I fear Alisa will need to be carried soon…  I was afraid thy push to have them accompany us would be met with many challenges due to their frailty.  When will they receive the support of thy children?”

Elinor shook her head.  “It does not work with consistency; their own drive is what will allow this Seed to grow.  So… I have a suggestion that you may not like.”

Thor’s chest puffed up before discharging a stream of air.  “Thou wishes to leave them to trail behind us on their own…  They are not trained in the ways of survival, Lady Elinor.”

“Hmm-hmm.  As Kulitta said, we do not have the luxury of coddling them, which means we must present obstacles in their way in order for them to tap into the power they desire…  Apate will join them.”

The trickster’s expression blanked.  “Huh?  Why must I babysit them, Mistress—would not the brute be a far better candidate?”

Elinor’s teeth flashed.  “It’s that personality of yours that makes you perfect for the job!  You don’t care about them but are chained to their feet; their troubles are your troubles.  Therefore, you’ll get them ready far quicker than anyone else, or… they’ll cause a change in you!  Haha.”

“Perfect…” she hissed, glaring at Kulitta’s smirk.

Thor was torn between frustrating the trickster and his desire to train the children, which was the reason for Elinor’s next interjection.

“A trial through fire is always needed to mold warriors, and isn’t that what we want, Thor?”

“Haaa. Haha.  It is, Lady Elinor; they may not be warriors yet, but they have told me their desire to become stronger…  Thy plan is sound, yet combatting the trickery of one such as Hera’s harlot is a daunting task.”

“Isn’t that the point?”

“Very well.  Do not try anything questionable, harlot!” he warned, electricity sparking from his eyes.

“Honestly, what kind of ‘child predator’ do you think I am?  Such an idiot,” she grumbled.  “What’s the point!  I’m a slave—a servant…  My will is not my own, you muscle-headed dolt!  So, can you quit insulting me?”

Kulitta crossed her arms, tapping her whip against her side.  “Haha.  This could be fun.”

Elinor moved to the sulking woman, causing her golden eyes to crease and head to lower; in truth, she felt terrible for Apate’s pessimistic outlook on life, and part of her goal in this was to further develop her ties to them.  “Apate… have you ever been a leader?”

“Me?  No…”

“Consider yourself promoted!  You have free will to use your tricks as you see fit in preparing them; the only thing I will forbid is lying to them since trust must be built, which is impossible on a bed of lies.  Have fun!”

Promptly turning around, Elinor entered the halls, leaving the trickster in a partial daze at the sudden revelation; she wasn’t just babysitting, but Elinor had trusted her with a responsibility, which was probably more than anyone else had done in her long life.

Thor was beside her in a single bound, glancing back at the woman as Valentina neared the trickster, struggling to breathe.  “Is it essential to facilitate her growth when she has had no tie nor obligation to rise to such a station?”

Kulitta giggled, drawing his focus.  “Authority is a drug; as much as it can be a curse to others and for those fumbling around… it can stimulate people to take actions in… unpredictable ways.  Trust can go a long way, and lost opportunities spur change…  I believe we all would benefit from learning more about who Apate truly is under all her veils, which responsibility will show… in time.”

“Humph.  What do you two see that I do not?”  Thor’s grip on his hammer tightened as he glanced back to see Apate meet with the tiger girl.  “I will temper my prejudice…  You are showing me many new angles from my previous way of life, Lady Elinor.”

Elinor shrugged, scanning the decorative walls of the entryway, restored by Edmon’s efforts.  “Something your father knew well, I’m sure, Thor, was that a ruler cannot do everything on their own, and coal can become a diamond under the right circumstances.  Apate has lived a lifetime of persecution from your enemies.  What would your brother do?”

“Haha!  Thou continues to make excellent points,” Thor smirked, likely recalling Loki’s mischief-making.  “My brother has always been willing to take seemingly stupid risks… which often lead to far more trouble than he expects.”

“Life is always a gamble,” Elinor mused.  “Now, how fast can we push our guide?”

A strained laugh came from Nelika as they smiled at the caramel-skinned ri’bot, and Elinor broke into a consistent jog, pushing them forward.

In truth, adventure was an enticing prospect; she could have let her sister handle this job, but she wanted to push herself, and running into the face of the walls that blocked her path was always her preferred method of dealing with problems—head-on.  Plus, her husband was now missing, and she couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when she was his knight, cloaked in the veil of death.

 

* * *

 

Valentina puffed out a long stream of air, fur-covered chest pumping as she leaned over to rest her hands against her knees; she’d been trying her best to keep up, yet the Empress kept increasing her pace.  She knew it probably was on purpose, but it still frustrated her that she couldn’t keep up.

Apate gave her a sweet smile that didn’t touch her eyes as she neared; Thor had warned them about this sparkly-green-dressed woman.  “Yo, what’s up, Val—can I call you Val—I seem to have been put in charge of your little God-Touched group!”

We’re being left behind, and guess who’s the only one with tracking skills…  Great.

“Haaa.  Okay,” she mumbled, calming her thumping heart. “So… am I going to have to follow their scent then?”

Adjusting her skimpy top, the wine-haired woman frowned.  “Well, aren’t you quick on the uptake?  Haaa.  It would be a pain explaining it multiple times, so…  Actually!  Why don’t I tell you, and you can be my little lieutenant?”  She clapped.

Long tail flicking to the left, Valentina grimaced.  “Do I have to?”

Apate’s face dropped its caring, cheerful act, showing the apathy she felt for them while placing a hand on her hip.  “Look, let’s get the pretenses out of the way; I was told to do something by the Death Goddess that holds my leash.  We can make this enjoyable or a pain for us all.”

“Hehe.  I like this version of you a lot better,” Valentina muttered, groaning as she leaned left and right.  “Can I make a suggestion, Captain Apate?”

The personification of trickery rolled her eyes. “Must you?”

She flashed her sharp teeth; it was evident the woman had never had authority before since she didn’t just shut her down.  “I don’t know much about you, and you don’t know much about us; if we’re going to make this work and not get under your skin, I think we should all learn a bit more about each other.  Fair?”

Apate sucked on her rosy bottom lip for a moment.  “I… find it incredibly annoying that I cannot lie to you.  How is that?  Ooh!  How about this…  My intimidating slaver wishes for you to go through a hellish time and has tasked me to oversee your torture.  I wonder if this was the kind of undeniable truth she wished me to share, hmm?  Is that cool?”

“Meow!  I thought I was the cat,” Valentina snickered, holding up a hand. “You are so bitter!  I kind of like it.  You can call me Val if you like.”

“Heh.  Is that so?” she frowned, staring at her extended arm. “I am not amused at being forced to act against my nature…  It makes me uncomfortable.  Am I to presume you want me to be real?”

Realizing she wasn’t going to shake her hand, Valentina withdrew it with a shrug.  “Do whatever you want, Boss.”

Apate shifted to the side to glare back at the group already lost from sight ahead of them.  “What do you think I want?  Such a stupid statement when I can’t do anything of the like.”

Valentina glanced at Adoncia’s group.  Alisa had her arm around her boyfriend’s stooped shoulder as she struggled to keep going.

They’d walked over twelve miles at a swift, two-hour pace down one of Nethermore’s main streets to reach the primary southeast gate, and the sunlight was just brightening the heavens as morning showed her glory.

She didn’t have anyone like Alisa to be there to support her; Valentina wasn’t delusional enough to think she didn’t want something similar, but nothing like that had clicked in her life.  Perhaps one day, but right now, she had to be strong in her own way.

Thor gave them his opinion on the Empress and those they would be traveling with, which changed from his first explanation, but that made sense after everything they’d gone through.  Valentina had developed her own thoughts from everything she’d experienced thus far since coming to this Empire.

Ultimately, her goal was to be strong enough to live however she wanted, which meant she needed to stand toe to toe with the Empress herself; it was something Nungal resonated with her on.

Valentina learned a lot from her time with the Princess of Irkalla and couldn’t help but be drawn to her unbreakable will to do anything to achieve her goal, even if it meant disobeying her terrifying mother.

Smiling at Apate, ears spreading out, Valentina asked what Nungal posed to her, “Captain, I think you want exactly what I want…  Don’t you want to get powerful enough to break those chains the Empress has you in?”

“Humph-haha!” Apate’s gaze fell to the black stone street. “You’re funny… so, so ignorant to think that is ever going to happen…  I’ve lived a very long time, Val, and what have I learned?  Guess.”

“Hmm.”  Holding her hands behind her back, Valentina’s illuminated yellow irises shifted to the grumpy personification; she was beginning to see the cracks in Apate’s armor since she was at such a severe handicap of being unable to lie.  “It’s easier to fall in line than rock the boat?”

“Ugh…  Hmm-hmm-hmm.  I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that…”  A feigned smile brightened her face.  “I know…  Here’s your first task as your captain.  Find your way to the Empress without my help.”

Valentina sighed as the waving woman dispersed in sparkling light, becoming utterly untraceable, and even her scent seemed to be erased from her memory.

Well… that could have gone better.

Folding her arms under her bust, she turned in a slow circle; she’d only met the energy she sent back, but it seemed Apate was somewhat of a defeatist.  Then again, her frustration showed Valentina she didn’t want to be.

She waited several minutes for the three to catch up, motioning for them to take a seat on the sidewalk.  “We can chill for a bit.”

“Are you sure?” Adoncia asked, frowning as she looked after her Empress.  “They’re so far ahead of us now…”

“I’m… so sorry,” Alisa gasped, coughing a bit.  “I’m… just holding everyone back,” she sniffed, crying due to fatigue and frustration.  “I don’t want to be the weakling…”

“Hey…  You’ve been doing amazing,” Sal encouraged, breathing a little hard himself.  “We aren’t going to be superheroes on the first day out.  Heh.  Remember what Thor said?”

“I’m still holding everyone back…”

A sudden thought struck Valentina as Sal comforted his girlfriend.  “Adoncia, you can follow the Empress through your one thing, right?  I’ve heard rumors that the undead know where the Empress is at all times.”

Adoncia pulled a sniffling Alisa into her lap to rest.  “We can only go as far as we can.  Don’t be too hard on yourself…”

After making sure she wouldn’t keep berating herself, the maid smiled and shook her head.  “The Empress cut my link to communicate through the Nexus a while ago; she can contact me, but I have no idea where she is…  What did Apate talk to you about?”

“Haaa…”  Studying the damaged outer buildings, Valentina shook her head.  “I bet she’s still around us, but I kind of embarrassed her, I think.  From what she said, the Empress wants us to find our own way to her, which… means I’m the new guide, I guess.”

“Sorry…” Alisa whispered, hand still pressed against her chest.  “I’m trying.  When do you think our Seeds will kick in?”

Adoncia shook her head.  “Let’s not think about that…  The Empress is telling us to survive on our own.  I don’t think I should carry you, Alisa; the trial is to see how far we can go.  You can only do what you can,” she whispered, brushing her bangs away from her slick forehead.

Valentina nodded. “You guys rest up; I’m going to scout ahead more…”

She paused as Adoncia called out to her.

“Wait.  I know you’re antsy, Val, but you’re the only one that can guide us, and if you did make Apate mad, she could create an illusion to separate us.”

Her ears stood up as a soft chuckle came from the trickster nearby, appearing beside a wall with one of the fruits that naturally grew on the trees along the road.  “Smart, Ms. Maid.  I was going to do a little trick, but I have a better idea…”

Valentina’s gut tightened as a low growl came from the rotted wooden doorway beside Apate—she took a step closer to Sal as he got to his feet in alarm—the scent of a Ragnlar made her fur stand on end.

“Hold up!  Hold up!” she hissed, heart beginning to pump frantically; Thor warned them that Apate’s illusions were basically reality itself to the individual—if they died to her trick, they were really dead.  “Can you really do this?”

Playing with her shoulder-length, wine-colored hair, Apate shrugged.  “Meh.  Didn’t I tell you my job was to be your torturer?” she liltingly cooed as the giant, six-legged beast exited at a prowl; it was as tall as the trickster. “Aww… who’s a good kitty?” 

Valentina jumped back, fur covering her open skin in preparation for the fight as it darted forward.  It was faster than the living alpha she’d fought in the jungle, and that had been too strong without the element of surprise; there was no shot she could handle a Ragnlar.

Her instincts told her to run, but she couldn’t leave the others; she was the only one who could actually fight.

Drawing upon her courage, her claws elongated as she prepared to send a swipe at the beast; it would be useless against its thick fur, but she had to try.  Its sharp fangs were already a meter from her face as she brought her hand up, but her blow never landed.

A blur of motion made her freeze as an iron club smashed into the Ragnlar’s skull, caving it in and instantly changing its momentum, sending blood splattering all over her.

“Huh…”

Ears pulled back, Valentina watched a hot puff of air stream out of Adoncia’s fanged teeth as she drew back her weapon; a fierce red glow surrounded her now muscular, crimson-tinted skin as what appeared to be rose paint outlined her bright, yellow eyes.

Her blonde hair shimmered like liquid gold as it shifted with her movement, a low rumble in her throat as her sharp eyes turned to the trickster; the pulse of wildfire of energy she emanated made Valentina trip onto her butt, wincing as she landed on her tail.

Adoncia’s two energy-like horns solidified as she snarled, “Is that it?”

“Ooh!  Interesting,” Apate clapped, and the illusionary Ragnlar vanished with the blood spotting Valentina’s fur.  “Hehe.  It is rather annoying trying to force my way past your innate mental resistances as an undead, but I suppose that is to be expected… maybe I should exclude you next time.  Test one passed!  Will you pass the second?  Hehe.  I’m starting to have fun!”

She hazed and vanished.

“Woah…” Sal helped Alisa up.  “Is that going to be a recurring thing?”

“Probably,” Adoncia sighed, aura slowly diminishing as she reverted back to her thin, black-haired self.  “You okay, Val?”

“Y-Yeah, but… what the hell was that?!” she asked, accepting the maid’s hand before rubbing her stinging tail.  “You can turn into… whatever that was?”

“An Ogress!” Sal answered, looking a tad nervous at his sister’s sudden transformation.  “Isn’t she strong?”

“No kidding,” she mumbled.  “I could hardly see you move—that was…  Yeah,” she finished, unable to find the words.  “Hehe.  I guess you are one of the Empress’ maids.”

Adoncia forced a smile as they started on the path again. “Yeah… it comes with some weaknesses.  Can you find some food when we enter the jungle?”

Catching the implication, a low groan came from within Valentina’s throat.  “Should we really be discussing weaknesses with Apate nearby?”

“Hehe.  It’s pretty easy to tell, and I don’t think the Empress’ goal is to kill us, so… she won’t, but it will mean you need to handle any more surprises she may have for us.”

Suddenly feeling much better about having someone else she could potentially train with on their journey and rely on, a thought suddenly struck her: Apate sending monsters at them was excellent training for her reaction time and senses.

Scooting closer to whisper in Adoncia’s ear, she said, “If I suddenly run off, just tell the others to wait.”

The maid’s blue eyes softened, and she nodded, knowing Apate could suddenly throw them a curve ball if she knew they were running off to get food.  Valentina was reasonably confident the trickster wouldn’t try to follow her through the trees when she went for a hunt and likely would want some warm meat herself.  Their next opportunity to appeal to Apate would probably come at lunchtime.

Working around Alisa’s trembling legs, it wasn’t until the sun was high overhead that they made it to the jungle; Apate was surprisingly silent throughout the journey—of course, a rainstorm soaked them for an hour when there wasn’t a cloud in the sky—but the second they got to the thick undergrowth, she scent of another jungle cat made her freeze.

She wasn’t sure if it was real or fake, and that was the trouble when dealing with the trickster; deciding it was better to be on the safe side, she jumped into the trees, scanning for its presence, and sure enough, claw marks were showing it had claimed the territory.

There’s no way Apate would know their habits, right?  This has to be a real one…

Making a snap decision, she prowled after the creature; it was an ambush predator and could circle around to lay in wait if they blindly went forward.  Valentina carefully jumped through the jungle’s high branches, tracing the cat’s lingering pheromones that permeated the air until spotting the brown-furred variant.

She swallowed her nervousness, letting the thrill of a hunt pull her in; still, there was the tickling apprehension that this could still be a trick.

Carefully positioning herself to jump down on the beast, she patiently waited until its focus shot to a nearby Frave—the raccoon-like creature with tough, thick fur—and it slowly left its low position to attack; the second its rear rose and blade-like tail stiffened, she pounced.

Using a skill she obtained after Apate’s attack earlier, she kicked the air to angle her attack to slip under its own pounce, raking the air to send her mid-range energy slash at its vulnerable underbelly—it hit—and the Ragnlar vanished, leaving the smirking face of the trickster in its place.

“Dammit!” she screamed, tumbling across the dirt and mud as the Frave jumped at her sudden noise and ran into the brush.

Stopping on her face, Valentina growled while pulling herself out of the muck.  “Bleh…  Grr-argh!  Apate!  Where are you?!”

The woman materialized on a mossy, half-protruded rock, legs crossed and a smug look on her face.  “Oh, did you trip?  Sucks to be you.  Haha!”

“Can you be less of a pain in the ass!?” she coughed, wiping mud away from her chest, face, and neck.  “How did you even follow me; do you have some kind of godly teleport or something?”

“How cute,” she mused.  “You actually think I need to be near you to affect your Intelligence; you know my level of ‘tricks’ are far, far more refined than anything you can imagine.  I can affect you from miles away; I’m still here enjoying Alisa’s fear of bugs… there’s always one in her hair, crawling toward her ear.  The poor thing is becoming paranoid!  I wonder how long it will be before she asks to have her pretty brown hair shaved?”

“That’s so… weak,” she grumbled, erasing Apate’s amusement.

“Excuse me?  You’ll have to explain that one, kitten.”

Valentina huffed and glared at the trickster.  “You can’t take out your frustrations on the Empress, so you settle for us, but you really don’t get all that much enjoyment out of this, do you?  I can tell you what will.”

“Oh?  Enlighten me.  What can a mortal teach me when I’ve lived eons?”

“Gaining a backbone!” she shot back, making the woman’s crossed legs tighten against each other.  “All you do is hide, but aren’t the best tricks the ones where you can share them with others… not that I have a lot of practice with it…”

“Hah.  You admit you don’t even know if that’s true!  Who would laugh at my tricks, huh?  Not once has anyone done such a thing.”

“Because they suck… like you!  Get some better ones.  Maybe someone would like you…” she grumbled, storming back to the other three.

Jumping from tree to tree, she stopped off at a small brook to wash her dirty fur; she did feel humiliated and annoyed.  Plus, she didn’t like getting messy because it was hard to clean some parts of her body.

“You would laugh at my jokes?”

“Son of a—” Valentina stumbled back and fell into the rocky water as the trickster hovered in the air, appearing only inches from her face.

Letting the cool stream drag her tied-back, tiger-like hair and flow around her, she slowly worked around her jaw, glaring at the rays of light peeking through the canopy.

I’m going to kill her.  I’m going to kill her…

“I didn’t kill you, did I?” Apate drolled in an eye-rolling way. “Did I scare the cat out of her fur?”

Valentina’s tail slapped the water, spraying water with every beat as she internally raged.  “If you—mmg-hm-hmm…  I tried to be friendly when we first talked, but you can’t trust a single person.  You’re the worst!  So, how could anyone be friends with you when all you do is make people’s lives miserable?!” she snapped, rising to her side with one arm.

Apate played with the tail of her braid before crossing her legs and hovering down to sit on the water’s surface; her narrowed golden eyes were on the brook’s edge, where a few puffy critters gathered, hopping to the stream to drink.

“I… have been feeling a bit hungry.  If you slaughter and make them presentable… I could be persuaded to give you a rest.”

“Get bent!” Valentina shot back, rising to her feet and storming into the jungle.  “Cook your own damn food; I’m not going to be your little cook slave.”

“Wha—fine!  Suit yourself!”

Valentina’s jaw locked, ears folding down as muddy rain began falling from the sky to blanket her in gunk.  “Is that the best you’ve got?  Pfft.  If you were at least a little nicer, maybe you’d have someone to feed your skanky ass…  Who designed your clothes anyway—a stripper?”

She rolled her eyes as a jungle cat jumped out of the jungle, taking her to the ground and holding its sharpened tail against her belly.

“Yeah?” she hissed at the Ragnlar.  “Do it, Apate!  Oh, you can’t because you’re a coward; are you seeing the Empress’ hounding green eyes right now—her spear at your throat?”

The Ragnlar’s ears pulled back as he backed away, making Valentina scoff, “Eons of living as a coward; is immortality even worth it when you’re too scared to ever live your life in the first place?!”

“You don’t understand anything about me!” the Ragnlar snarled, mud turning to rain as thunder rained around her.

The sound made her flinch, but she refused to back down. “I don’t!  How could anyone when you push everyone away?  I used to be like that—it sucks.  So don’t make everyone else’s life terrible to make yourself feel better!”

She sat in the downpour, staring Apate’s creation down before the huffing and puffing cat screamed, “All you want is to use me like everyone else—trick my lover… ruin this other life… make my enemy kill their friend…  No one can trust a trickster, so they imprison and use me instead!”

“Yeah, that sucks!” Valentina shot back. “Those people suck, but what trick did I want you to do?  I just asked you to get to know us—to get strong with us, so you don’t have to be imprisoned—even I can see the Empress wants you to learn to be strong on your own, so you aren’t taken advantage of…  To show you’re more than just a bitter trickster…”

“What do you know, you’re just another tool like the rest of us,” she growled, but there was emotion in her voice as the Ragnlar turned into smoke.

Valentina blinked, and the storm was gone—fires extinguished, rumbling clouds fading, and most of the mud coating her like a cloak was cleared away—various sounds that hadn’t been there before filtered into her mind as she glanced around.

Waiting a few minutes, she concluded Apate was gone, or she was in another illusion; it wouldn’t do her any good to fixate on it, so she shook out her hair and returned to Adoncia, Sal, and Alisa at the edge of the jungle.

Adoncia’s blue eyes snapped to her as she neared. “You okay?  You’ve been gone for two hours.”

She scratched her arm and motioned for them to continue.  “Good.  Huu-haaa.  Feeling more rested, Alisa?”

The younger girl forced a smile. “Yeah… it was rough for a bit—bugs everywhere—but I think Apate grew bored.”

“Let’s not talk about her…  Ready to go?”

Sal chuckled, rubbing his stomach. “We’re starved, but sure.  It sucks we weren’t able to bring any supplies.”

“A part of the exercise of becoming self-sufficient,” Adoncia laughed.  “Why don’t we find a good place to camp in the next few hours and start making a shelter—get a fire started?”

“Can you do that as an ogress?” Sal asked, following Valentina into the brush as she found Elinor’s scent again.

“Pfft.  No.  I know how to start a fire without powers.”

“When did you learn that?” Alisa asked, smacking her forehead as an insect landed on it.  “Freaking bugs…  Eww, I think this one is real.”

“Ack.  Yeah, no fun.  Did you two forget I was in the Girl Scouts?”

Chatting as they went, Valentina was a tad surprised the trickster had laid off; she had to be nearby.  When the sun began to fall in the sky, they’d made it twenty more miles through the jungle terrain, mostly taking advantage of the downhill path the Empress had taken.

Adoncia wasn’t kidding when she’d told them she had wilderness experience, seemingly having learned through some of her side jobs and scout badges; it came in handy because before long, they were standing around the fire, cooking a bit of some smaller rodent the size of a large dog Valentina managed to snatch, and finally, Apate materialized.

She stood off to the side, scanning the beds of large leaves they’d made and the food on the spit they’d made; Valentina had carefully gutted and prepared the animal, using her experience with the trappers of their small town.

Alisa smiled at the standoffish woman, and when the meat was done, she got up and offered the trickster half of her own.  “Here.”

“Why?” Apate questioned, staring at the offered food. “I tormented you with insects for much of the day.”

“Hehe.  So, they weren’t real… glad to know these bumps will go away,” she giggled, looking at the welts on her arms.  “I don’t know… you just seem lonely and hungry.”

Hesitantly taking the meat, she studied it, and Valentina huffed as the woman looked at her.

“Don’t expect sympathy from me.  Make all the puppy-dog eyes you want; if you aren’t going to be sincere, then I’m done with being nice.”

“Hmm…”  Ignoring her comments, Apate looked up at the trees as dozens of rodents appeared out of nowhere, hauling down leaves to prepare a bed for her.

She didn’t say another word while eating and promptly settled into her bed with furry creatures acting as her blanket.

Thor was right…

Jumping into the trees to sleep on a branch by herself, Valentina stayed up with Adoncia—the maid didn’t require sleep, acting as their permanent nightwatch—but at some point, she drifted off to sleep. 

---